For those not in the Chicago area, JBTV is a brodcasted, Emmy-winning program that is dedicated to local (and sometimes not-so-local) music. It’s a show that has kept true to it’s roots – totally non-corporate, and it just celebrated its 25 anniversary. It’s basically an institution for Chicago music lovers. Walking around the studio is like walking through a museum. Everything on the walls and on the tables are signed… even some chairs are signed!

Imagine my happiness when I was invited to take photos for Treaty of Paris’ performance on there just a few weeks ago! This was the fourth night of what I dubbed my “Treaty of Paris week,” as I shot a rehearsal, their EP release, promos, and then their JBTV appearance. Luckily, I love these guys, otherwise I might have been sick of them. It really is a testament to their performance that I wasn’t sick of them. I could have watched them a few more nights, in fact. (more…)

I can’t believe I haven’t mentioned this before – for a while, I’ve been working with They Will Rock You (TWRY), which is an utterly fantastic source for music news, exclusive interviews, tons of pictures, and giveaways. You can often see my photos there and occasionally an article or at least a small news blurb on one of my favorite locals. My dear friend Mary Ouellette is TWRY’s creator and goddess of all trades. She seems to live and breathe music and is constantly introducing me to new bands via the site. Plus, she’s a pretty fantastic photographer as well.

Honestly, I can’t say enough good things about TWRY. It is a truly a labor of love, and I can’t imagine how much time goes into it to make it so awesome. It is definitely worth your time to check out the site or follow TWRY on Twitter.

I got an email from Jason Tang, a fellow concert photographer, a few days before this show, introducing MER, and inquiring about my availability. From there, I was in contact with MER himself, and through emails back and forth, I discovered that he and I shared similar musical tastes – he has played with one of my favorite singer/songwriters (Garen from Kill The Alarm), and also attended a few of the recent concerts that Butch Walker played here. Thus, I had high expectations for his show…. and I wasn’t disappointed.

MER has a great, powerful voice, and an engaging stage presence. I always marvel at those that are able to get onstage, by themselves, and keep the attention of the crowd.  Check him out HERE. (more…)

This was a wonderful show, first opened by Wolfgang Schaefer (oh oh! pictures of him here!), who was great, and then Snowsera.  Snowsera surprised us by playing some stuff that we hadn’t heard yet (which you can download now, for free!).  I always love when bands break out the new stuff, especially when you can tell that the band is trying to push themselves to do something different, which was apparent in Snowsera’s new music.  Overall, it was just one of those local shows that make you excited about local music.  Yay, I like those.

Also, don’t forget to check out some backstage pictures from this show here! (more…)

This is a short post because I actually went to this show to enjoy it, and not as much to take pictures. Of course, I brought along my camera – but only one camera. I didn’t fight to get front and center either.

There are few performers that are more entertaining than Butch Walker. Not only is he funny and engaging to the crowd, but he’s just good. Naturally good. Everything he does is good. He can do a random cover on the fly, not know half the words or all the chords, and it’s still much better than many other bands that rehearse their hearts out. I’ve been going to Butch Walker shows for about 8 years now, and I never tire of them. I’ve seen him solo and with supporting bands – and I must say, he’s much better without the distraction of backing bands. That’s one of the reasons I was so excited about this show; despite a new band and a new CD being released, it was a solo gig (kind of)!

Butch did four shows at Schubas (which is a tiny, intimate venue), and they all sold out very quickly. The first three nights, he performed three of his albums in their entirety, and the last night (the one I went to) was just a hodgepodge. I’m so glad we went to the last night. He tried to avoid songs that were on the three albums he performed from, so the hour and half that he played was filled with random covers, old songs, songs that have never seen the light of day, and all sorts of tidbits. It was very laid back and casual – “Suspicious Minds” was even sung since it was Elvis’ birthday. It was okay that Butch didn’t know all the words. (more…)